Is this a strange scenario from a seller to a potential buyer?

[user 3234]

I see a little stallion advertised as a MUST SELL and he is listed as a gentle & well mannered for a fair price. He also has very nice colors. She also noted she has a foal by him. So I email the owner and ask her basic question like how tall is he and is he registered. She emails me back and says she does have his temp papers (she never converted to Perm) and she can go out and measure him. No problem.

In a corresponding email I asked additional questions like what is the name of the registry he is with and what is his registered name? In addition, to medical questions about vaccinations, worming and when he had his teeth floated and if the has had any medical conditions in the past such as colic, laminitis, etc. If possible, I requested to send me pictures of the minis front & side so I could see his confirmation. The basic question any potential buyer would ask an owner.

Since I live some miles away I felt this would help my get the information required before I made a very long trip out there. I was very surprised to hear her response that she cannot bother with these emails questions and that if I wanted to see him to call her so I could come take a look at him. This was kind of sad that she would not go the extra effort to answer a few basic questions because I was really interested in him. I thought he would make an excellent therapy horse after being gelded.

As an owner of a horse you are selling (especially in our economy) to a potential buyer is there anything in the above that would make you feel like I offended you that you would not want to provide additional information by email about the horse you are selling?

 

[Sue_C.]

Wow, that is strange. Me...if someone e-mails and asks for any information on a horse I have for sale...it is hard to shut me up. I tell everything, above all, anything negative I can think of. I have been accused by some buyers of trying to talk them out of my horses as if I want to keep them all.

Besides, if you have a horse advertised, and have put up an e-mail address, you should already HAVE a standard letter already made-up with all of that pertenent information on it anyways. What is so hard about that??

 

[walkermini]

Its unfortunate the seller feels that way, but I have come across quite a few that do. As a seller, I am happy to answer questions and send pictures a potetial buyer requests. As a potential buyer, I have had many sellers act as if they shouldnt be bothered, and I should buy their horse without a second thought with the very limited info the have provided about the horse. I have also inquired and had extremely helpful sellers, so of course they aren't all that way. Its really not limited to horses either, looking at various items on our local classifieds and craigslist I'm sometimes amazed at how little info someone gives on something, when on these sites there is no limit to the number of words in the ad.

If you are still very interested, if there is a phone number you could call the seller, some people are just much more comfortable talking than typing. Or if no number, did you tell the seller you are quite a ways from them? If not, maybe they would be more willing to put in the effort for you. If the horse is really cheap I would guess they just want to sell it ASAP with as little effort as possible, however.

I do have to say though, at the other end of the spectrum it is really annoying when I list a horse for sale and put all kinds of info in the ad and someone asks for the horses age, height, price, etc.(all of which are in the ad) I feel like asking them if they even read the ad at all? :arg! Okay, sorry for the little off topic side vent there!

 

[muffntuf]

If you are truly interested--did you explain you were a distance away from her place?

It is strange.

 

[user 3234]

Thank you so much for your input. I feel I did everything right and did not insult her in anyway.

Many thanks,

Sherry

 

[Minimor]

I don't know as this is the normal response from the majority of sellers, but I wouldn't say it's all that strange either. I've come across a number of people who are simply hopeless at long distance sales. They are hopeless at taking photos and simply don't want to bother (and if they do get around to taking some photos they're often so bad you can't judge the horse's conformation by them anyway!), they can't see why you want to e-mail or phone & ask a bunch of questions, they figure that if you're at all interested you should just come & look and see for yourself. Well, for me, I'm happy to see photos and buy from those & then arrange transport, so if the seller isn't co-operative I write off that seller. No big deal, there are plenty of horses out there to choose from, and many sellers are very nice to deal with, even via long distance!

As a buyer I generally don't demand a lot of photos--I have purchased from a few very young foal photos and been completely satified with the weanling and yearlings when they arrived--I don't even bother to ask about vaccinations, deworming and medical history, other than when the horse arrives I'll say oh, by the way, when was he last dewormed, and has he had his vaccinations this year? If so, which ones?

 

[~Lisa~]

There are many nice horses out there and if you feel the seller is not giving you the type of customer service you feel comfortable with then time to move on.

It is best when deciding to sell a horse to make sure you have all those pictures that are normally requested- set up photos from either side- pasture pictures (not of horse eating)- leg photos front and back and teeth photos along with a couple action shots so you have the basics to start with.

I am not the best photographer but make sure I have enough info for the prospective buyer to see if they are indeed interested in getting more info on the horse or if it is not what they were looking for

 

[supaspot]

I found this topic very interesting and I was wondering if you would take a peek at my sales page and give me your imput (I can see Ive already made some of the mistakes you mention ...one of my foals is grazing oops ! )

 

[ThreeCFarm]

If you want to sell, you should be willing to try to accomodate a buyer, in my opinion. I would steer clear of buyers that won't. Even when I was pony shopping for my son's pony, I ended up getting one that was just a couple hours away but still, she sent me pictures and a video. Why would I want to drive even just 4 hours round trip if I could tell from pics and/or video that it isn't right horse?

This is the age of the internet, if you advertise online, I think you should be willing to do a lot of communication online.

I try to have pics of legs, profile pics, bite pics, etc all ready before I even advertise. I will even take more pics if necessary for a buyer.

I once saw an ad on the Saleboard where the seller came right out in the ad and said she wouldn't take any more pics or do anything else!

And the pic she was using to advertise was a horrible pic with the horse standing in tall grass and it's head turned! Whatever!

 

[ThreeCFarm]

I found this topic very interesting and I was wondering if you would take a peek at my sales page and give me your imput (I can see Ive already made some of the mistakes you mention ...one of my foals is grazing oops ! )

Just some tips...Try to get down low on the ground to take pictures, as if you are standing, it visually shortens the horse's legs. Also, head on shots always make their heads look larger. And I know for me, I much prefer a side shot with the horse perpendicular to the person taking photo, not at an angle. Some pictures are attention getters because they are so pretty, but you still need good photos to show their conformation for buyers to evaluate.

 

[albahurst]

I certainly agree a seller should make every attempt to accomodate your requests.

I purchased a horse without recent pictures, as the seller did not have current pics. I should have been smarter- even though the horse had been a show horse the prior year, it wasn't maturing in a decent manner, IMO. Even though I was able to return the horse, it won't happen again- that is for sure. Lost alot of $$ for transport.

Just keep asking questions - I think your questions were great and I personally would like people to ask.

 

[HGFarm]

Wow, unbelievable. And the seller will wonder why they have not sold this horse in another year! Even if invited I probably would not go out of my way to see the horse- wonder if they are hiding something. They cant even tell you what registry it's in? Geez.

That is weird and I would just move on. Too bad, sounds like her horse would have a good home. But all some care about is getting out of the work load and the $ in their pocket.

 

[CharlesFamily]

I've dealt with the same thing recently. I saw an ad on the saleboard and inquired about a horse a couple of states away, but it was something I had been looking for and I was willing to drive. But I wanted to at least see a picture first.

I e-mailed inquiring about the horse and asked if the seller could please send a picture. It took a couple of days before I got a reply to my e-mail. The seller said she didn't have any pictures, but would take some soon and get them to me. That's the last I've heard from them - and that was 2 weeks ago.

Maybe they sold the horse to someone local who was able to just drive out. That's fine, but I think courtesy at least requires a response.

Barbara

 

[Mini Gaits Farm]

It doesn't sound to me like you did anything wrong. Any seller should be willing and ready to answer "all" questions pertaining to the horse. Where I lose my patience is when they keep e-mailing saying "more pictures" - "more pictures". I try to send a decent photo from all angles and when they keep wanting more and more and more....I have learned that the more photos they want....the less likely they are to buy anyway. I have bought horses over the internet and only saw three or four photos (sometimes less)...never found a need to ask for more. I was very pleased with the horse each time. I do agree that I like the photos to be current.

 

[Julie/Azariah]

You have every right to ask the questions you asked and more....If you were looking at one of my horses I would be quite GLAD that you asked those types of questions.

To me... it means that you~~

#1 know what you are looking at

#2 know what you are looking for

#3 are interested in purchasing a horse that has been well cared for (tells me you will care for it the way I do).

I WANT people like you to purchase my horses... NOT someone who thinks it is like a dog, has no clue how to care for a horse and no desire to learn.

If a seller doesn't want to get the information I need prior to a personal visit, I walk away, no matter how much I think I like that horse. The sale goes beyond the time of pick up in my opinion. I am finding a home for one of my family members or adding a new member to my family.

I want the right match for both horse and new owner.

You sound like a responsible horse owner to me... nothing less than that.

Best wishes for your search for a therapy horse!

 

[shalamara minis]

As one who sells several horses a year, you did nothing wrong. I welcome the type of question you asked. The only thing I have ever been asked to do that I was un able to do was provide a video of the horse. I'm not good with computors and my camera will transfer pics but videos don't do so well. And unfortunately the buyer did not like that answer. I try but it just doesn't always work. Hope you find a seller that will help you with your answers.

 

[weerunner]

The exact thing happened to me last year. The ad stated that they had a registered bay mare that had foaled before for sale.

I sent off the usual questions, what registry, are the papers current, could I see a pic of the mare in summer coat and maybe one of the foal they kept. Got the response back right away that if I wanted detailed info such as that I would have to come and see the mare and see the paperwork and foal then. It was a ~2 hour drive away but I felt like this little mare was calling to me so I hooked up my trailer and took a chance on her.

Ended up coming home with the mare and she just had her first foal for me last month

The lady was not trying to hide anything, but just could not be bothered to put that much effort into the sale. She was very lucky (and so was I) that I made the effort to go and see that mare. I dont really understand this type of response when your selling a horse. I'm the exact opposite.

 

[BBH]

If you are selling a horse or just about anything else I feel the seller should be willing to meet you half way on pic requests, measurements etc. In responding to a recent ad on CL I called as ad requested and asked for some measurments and other info on a harness....the man said he wasn;t going to do that it would fit any mini!! Well it is relisted and it is going to be awhile before he sells it with his attitude. Prompt replies for info should also be something a seller does giving perhaps more info than the potential buyer is asking.

 

[Bess Kelly]

OK, I agree with all......BUT........

all are also interested in selling animals that they have generally produced and are involved in horses, in general.

If this person has only one or two and just "wants/needs them gone" there may be a valid reason that they can't "be bothered". You just don't know what is going on in their lives. So, if you really think this horse may be good for you, try a phone call and gently get the gist of sellers state of mind. If they breed and sell, their reply is not a good response at all but, if I suggest that it may be a "situation" sale, don't throw the horse out with the bath water, LOL.

Try a phone call before you throw all away. THEN you can toss or drive.

Sometimes we're bad sellers/buyers. Sometimes we are overwhelmed by other things.

 

[michele80906]

I ran into this A LOT when I was looking for a mature driving mini. There were absolutely none in my area when I was looking (Colorado) so I was checking ads in surrounding states. I couldn't believe the people who would not answer questions straight up or took forever to get back to me. Finally, if the person was resistant to my questions, I just went on to the next ad. I simply decided I was NOT going to purchase a horse sight unseen without all kinds of pictures and videos, no matter how perfect the horse seemed to be. Michele